The Pyx Review

6/10

Does anyone truly know the full story of a death?  Was it murder?  Or suicide maybe? This 1973 horror film vaguely raises this question, as we see the story of a troubled girl named Elizabeth's untimely passing.  This movie was good in my book, because of a very interesting storyline and great cast. 

The movie begins with a big city night.  The street lights fill the dark skies, and cars cruise slowly on the asphalt.  One particular driver is soon scarred by the tragic falling of a girl from her building's window. It makes very little sense of why this happened, and what actually happened to be frank. Soon after, the viewer gets to witness the investigation at the scene of the death. People are crying from this horrid event, and there are cops everywhere.  I think this intro scene was very well done, because it was very real, and it was extremely interesting. 

One of the cool things about this movie is how it goes back and forth between after the death, and the events leading up to it. This was much more interesting than the movie just having investigators find stuff out the whole time, because it gave us a chance to do the work ourselves. It also gives us the chance to have a better look of who this girl Elizabeth really was.  We saw her personality, her demons, and her daily life.  This helps us have sympathy for her, instead of just seeing her as the dead chick. 

Another thing that I liked quite a bit was the acting.  Karen Black was exquisite in the role of "Elizabeth Lucy" because she had so many faces to her.  At some moments, she was seductive with her fiery grace, and at others she could experience a complete mental breakdown.  It was amazing to me that she could have so much diversity in her acting, because it made the character so much more authentic.  Both Christopher Plummer and Donald Pilon were fantastic in the roles of the detectives, because they had a lot of toughness to them, and a real lack of sympathy for anyone.  This really got portrayed well, because both men did a great job of being stoic for a lot of the time.

The movie is very slow moving for a lot of the time, and at a few points it gets a little too dry. The one thing that makes up for this is the gritty realism of life portrayed. There is the horrors of drug addiction, prostitution, struggles of homosexuals and crime, which were all done very authentically.  This makes the movie more than a horror movie, but also a criticism of the problems in our society.  So basically, a good thing came from a possible weakness, and broadened the horizon of the movie's artistry greatly. 

"The Pyx" uses a very religious motif, and there was really a big clash between the very catholic people in some parts, and the satanists in others.  I feel that Elizabeth's character has a little bit of catholic symbolism to her, because even though she had many many bad things that she was responsible for, she tried to keep her praying and religious faith too. This made me think of Mary Magdalene a little bit, and this made her character all the more likable.  There were also scenes that took place in a convent and churches, which showed the love for Catholicism even more. As the film grows closer and closer to its climax, the whole cult and satan aspect begins to come in, which makes the feeling of a horror movie come in. I think this mix in faith makes things much more interesting than one or the other, because it gives an onscreen comparison of how much more peaceful the Christian religion is. 

The climax of the movie is very freaky.  Elizabeth is lured to a cult meeting, and we finally get to see exactly what happened. The nature of the movie becomes much more evil, and the darkness is absolutely insane. There are chants from a choir in the background, and the grainy filming makes things so raw and messed up. You can really tell that these people in the group are absolutely soulless.  They seem to have not one ounce of happiness in them, or mercy either.  The only problem with these scenes leading up to the end is that, even though there are details revealed on the death of Elizabeth, nothing too exciting really happens. I feel that any movie with a satanic undertone has the complete capability of being insane.  This one didn't do this though, and while it ended well, I just wish more thought had been put into it. 

Overall, there are many interesting factors to this film, and while it wasn't anything too great, it was still enjoyable enough to recommend a viewing to others. Be prepared for a slow moving and long movie, but also get ready for some great acting, and a gritty portrayal of a troubled life that you don't see too often.  All horror fans should give this movie a chance, and whether you like it or not is your choice, because it is extremely different and not for everyone.